


Loyalty

by Elenyafinwe



Series: Servants [2]
Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst, First Age, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Original Character(s), Second Age
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:47:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28361901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elenyafinwe/pseuds/Elenyafinwe
Summary: Ceomon has always served his lord Maglor faithfully and he is determined to carry out his master's last will. At the end of the First Age, the land is in turmoil and Maglor fears that his adopted sons Elrond and Elros might be lost in the turmoil. He tells Ceomon to look after them. But things turn out differently than they had all hoped. Ceomon is determined to protect the twins until his last breath.
Relationships: Elrond Peredhel & Elros Tar-Minyatur, Elrond Peredhel & Original Character(s), Elros Tar-Minyatur & Original Character(s)
Series: Servants [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2076924
Kudos: 9





	1. Preserving memories

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Treue](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/732198) by Elenyafinwe. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been meaning to write something about Ceo and Reth for a long time. I have finally put it into practice on the spur of the moment. I have set the text to finished for the time being, as it can stand on its own. But I plan to add more chapters episodically. I just don't know yet how many there will be, but the ideas are there. Actually, this would also be the perfect opportunity to give Ceo and Reth real elvish names and not this nonsense. But it's Ceo and Reth, I just couldn't! T.T

Maglor wept.

Ceomon only realised at that moment how bad things must really be for his master. He had repressed what lay ahead for them all.

Maedhros and Maglor went north to claim the remaining _silmarilli_ , and they knew they would not be coming back. And what they left behind.

"I have tried to be a father to them," Maglor lamented his sorrow. "And yet I will have to do this to them. We must go, tonight. They will want to follow us. Ceomon, you must promise me that you will stop them. No, _swear_ to me!"

Ceomon looked up. If his master, of all people, demanded an oath, he was dead serious.

"I will do everything in my power to protect Elrond and Elros, with my life if necessary," he said.

"Serve them as you have served me," Maglor demanded, now more composed. "This is my last command to you. Beleriand is breaking apart. Flee with them to the east and take Rethtulu with you. They will want to follow us, but you _must_ prevent that! Instead, pack the things that mean something to them and remind them of their time here. Difficult times lie ahead of them, ahead of all of you. It will do them good to remember the good times. I hope I could give them at least a few of those."

"Lord, you are a better father to them than Earendil ever could have been," Ceomon affirmed. "They love you and that will never change."

"And yet the guilt remains for what I stole from them," Maglor said quietly. But then he seemed to compose himself. "Go now, you have received my final orders," he continued in a firm voice. "Everything else is now in the hands of fate. And ... thank you. For everything."

Ceomon felt a lump in his throat. It hurt, so much. Maglor was the only family he had known since they left Valinor. He couldn't just leave behind the past centuries for which he had sacrificed so much. He had already turned to go, but turned around once more.

"Lord, since this must be our farewell ..." he began.

"Don't make it any harder," Maglor croaked.

Ceomon saw the despair in his eyes and the madness that shone through behind them. He was reluctant to leave his master in this condition. But where Maglor and Maedhros were going, he could not follow them. Not this time. The only thing left for him now was to carry out his master's last will and look after his adopted sons.

"I too would like to thank you for all you have done for me," he said, then he left.

He closed the door to Maglor's study and only then did he allow himself a single sob. It was over.

Silence often reigned in the house on Amon Ereb these days, but that evening it was particularly oppressive. With drooping shoulders, Ceomon crept to his room that he shared with Rethtulu. Surprisingly, Rethtulu was already there.

"Did Makalaure send you away too?" he greeted Ceomon.

Ceomon nodded. "You know this is the end," he said sadly. "Lord Maglor wants me to take care of the little ones and look after them."

"Lord Maitimo told me the same thing."

"Good." Somehow this relieved Ceomon. At least Rethtulu would not be lost to him.

"We will at least get some sleep now," Rethtulu said. "The lords will leave tonight, and then there will still be time to prevent the children from doing something foolish."

Ceomon said nothing to this and was just glad he had Rethtulu. He might otherwise be incredibly stiff to deal with, but now the clear line he was providing at least gave Ceomon some support in these confused times.

"Ceomon! Ceomon, wake up!"

Someone shook him rudely by the shoulder.

"The little ones have disappeared!"

All at once Ceomon was wide awake. Rethtulu, who had woken him, stood bending over him. Dim twilight fell into their room.

"What? Disappeared?" he asked, stunned. With his last order, his master had instructed him to protect the little ones. They couldn't just up and leave like that!

"They must have sneaked off in the night to follow the masters," Rethtulu continued. "It can't have been long; their beds are still warm. If we hurry, we may catch up with them and prevent worse."

"Let's go!" Ceomon jumped out of bed.

A violent earth tremor shook the house. Ceomon was knocked off his feet, but fortunately fell softly onto the bed. Rethtulu barely managed to hold on to the bedpost. Plaster trickled from the walls as cracks formed in the brickwork. Somewhere in the house there was a clattering and rumbling as numerous things, probably including some furniture, were broken.

The spectacle stopped as soon as it had started.

Ceomon and Rethtulu looked at each other for a breathless moment, stunned. All at once it was clear that they could not stay here any longer.

"Lord Makalaure told me to pack the belongings of the two and then go with them east over the mountains," Ceomon finally said. "You are the better tracker of the two of us. Go after them and find them. We'll find each other again somehow."

With that, everything was said; Rethtulu was not a man of many words. Immediately he reached for his helmet, the only piece of armour he did not wear all the time, girded his sword and quickly grabbed some provisions. Then he set off. Ceomon stayed behind and gathered together what Elrond and Elros should not lose under any circumstances. He ignored the few members of the house folk who still lived here these days and were now rushing around like startled chickens. He merely told them to go east.

The Lords had met their end and Elrond and Elros had followed them. And as if that were not enough disasters for one day, now began what they had all feared since the war began: Beleriand was falling apart.

Ceomon knew that this was the final end of his life so far, no less upsetting than the Noldor rebellion into which he had unreservedly followed his master. Whatever followed now was uncertain. Only that it would again be something completely different, that much was certain for him.

He looked at the sack with the things for Elrond and Elros. Then he let his eyes wander through their room, partly to see if he had missed anything, but partly also to say goodbye. He remembered too well the day when Lord Maglor had taken them in. Like his master, he had been taken with them from the first moment, watching them grow up and learning to love them. He hoped fervently that Rethtulu could find them and save them from worse.

Again a tremor shook the house, this time less powerful, but still enough to be a clear warning of what was to come. Ceomon hesitated for a moment, then decided to go after Rethtulu.

With the sack over his shoulder, he left the mansion, finally ending this chapter of his life.

The next few days brought Ceomon to find Rethtulu's trail. But it was as if he had disappeared off the face of the earth. Ceomon became restless. He had expected to have joined Rethtulu, who had the twins with him, long ago. That he had not yet found them caused concern to rise in him. It had been Maglor's last order to him to look after them, he did not want to disappoint his master now of all times.

The tremors became more frequent and more violent and Ceomon became increasingly desperate. Rethtulu couldn't have just disappeared with Maglor's little ones! He didn't even want to think about the alternative, that something had happened to them.

As the country shook more and more frequently and Ceomon still hadn't found a trace, he had to admit to himself that he had to abandon his search for the time being. It was clear to him by now that Beleriand was falling apart and he could only hope to find his salvation in the east.

Hopefully the Valar would at least have mercy on the twins, if they did not grant any to the Feanorians.

With a heavy heart, Ceomon abandoned his search for the time being and turned east. The land was in turmoil and he sensed that Beleriand's face was changing drastically from the sea. The old world would soon be no more.

Only later would Ceomon learn what was happening further west in Beleriand, how the Belegaer were pushing into the land and swallowing it up in their floods. He himself crossed the Ered Luin far to the north, which was perhaps his good fortune, for it kept him in relative safety.

Leaving the Ered Luin behind him, he now found himself in Middle Earth for the first time in his life. He gazed in wonder at the endless landscapes that stretched out before him. Then despair seized him. He had not the faintest idea where Elrond and Elros or Rethtulu were, or where he could begin to look for them. But then he took a deep breath, took heart and shouldered his luggage, which he had managed to save up to this point, and set off. He was certainly not the only one who had made it over the mountains. Sooner or later he was bound to meet other elves or humans.

Determined, he turned south. In the past weeks the land had been torn up and reshaped, but lately the quakes had become less and less frequent and had finally stopped altogether. Ceomon was hopeful that calm had finally returned.

One last time, however, the land reared up. As he walked, he felt one of the strongest tremors of recent weeks and heard a tremendous roar. It sounded almost as if the land was being torn open by a mighty force and was now rearing up in agony. The quake subsided after some time, but for days to come he heard a distant thunder as if from a mighty waterfall.

Later he would learn what had happened. The Belegaer had breached the Ered Luin further south, after the floodwaters had surged against the mountains for weeks. The sea had made a huge breach and the water masses were now pushing eastwards. Later, the new coastline would be called the Gulf of Lune.

With this, the land finally came to rest. The silence seemed almost eerie to Ceomon, now that he had become accustomed to the constant rumbling. He wondered what he should do next.

He wondered what the situation was like in the west and whether there was anything left of Beleriand. East of the Ered Luin, at any rate, he had felt comparatively little of the tremendous upheavals, far less than he had expected.

So he crossed the mountains again and was astonished to find that Ossiriand had remained largely intact. Now, however, looking down from the slopes of Ered Luin, he saw the sea glittering in the distance. Shaken, he paused. Beleriand was almost completely submerged in the sea. He could hardly imagine the forces of nature that were necessary for this.

But then he remembered his task. Somewhere out there were the twins, and even if he hoped Rethtulu was with them, he could not rely on it. If Ossiriand still existed, then there was a small chance that the mansion was still standing too. And perhaps the twins had been drawn back home.

Ossiriand might not have been wiped off the map, but it had changed its face greatly. Ceomon wandered disoriented through the country for some time until he knew where he was again. Only then could he set off in the direction of Amon Ereb.

In the meantime, a good year had passed since he had set out. All this time he had not found a soul and by now he was seriously worried that the fall of Beleriand was a far greater catastrophe than he had previously thought. Could the Valar really have wiped out the entire Elvish civilisation in Endor?

Even though he could now halfway orientate himself again, it took him a few days to reach the manor. He could see from a distance that the house was badly damaged, but still standing. The very worst damage had been caused by the numerous quakes, otherwise nature's desolation had largely passed the house by.

Seeing the damage hurt. Ceomon quickly realised that it would take a lot of work to rebuild the house.

He set about exploring the ruins. No one seemed to have been here since everyone had fled to the east. Everything had been abandoned and only the most necessary things had been packed. Now that there was no more immediate danger, Ceomon had more time and peace to pack. He went through the house again, looking for things that might be of importance to the twins if he found them.

He would find them, for sure. He forbade himself to think otherwise.

He noted with some pleasure that the library of the Lords Maglor and Maedhros had remained mostly undamaged. Some irreplaceable collectors' items had been stored here. It would have been a bitter blow if they had been lost beyond repair.

Then he heard footsteps behind him. A sudden hope sprang up in him that his search would now come to an end. When he turned around, however, he was quickly disappointed.

"Lindwain."

The Sinda seemed surprised to find him here. Surely he too had hoped for someone else. Lord Maedhros had hired Lindwain years ago to look after the twins' health. Ceomon had never really warmed to him, but in this situation they were probably acting in concert.

"I had hoped that someone would come back here," Lindwain said. "I had hoped it would be Elrond and Elros, but I suppose you are a start too. Why are they not with you? Nothing has happened to them, has it?" Concern spoke from his words.

"I don't know," Ceomon said regretfully. "I had not been able to prevent them from pursuing the Lords Makalaure and Maitimo. When the quakes began, I lost their trail and had to flee across the mountains. For a year now I have met no one."

"I can't tell you much more than that either," Lindwain replied. "I stayed with my lord Oropher all this time. However, I heard that Gil-galad has founded a settlement further south. He has been able to gather many refugees around him and has sent out for more. Perhaps you will have better luck there."

That was good news indeed!

"I thank you, Lindwain," said Ceomon. "Please do me the favour of keeping watch over the house a little longer. Perhaps I can send someone over to guard the library; it would be a shame to lose it."

"One more thing, Ceomon," Lindwain added. "Did you hear what happened to the Princes Maglor and Maedhros?"

Ceomon shook his head. He had suppressed the thought; he had not wanted to think about it.

"They had wanted to steal the silmarilli when they were refused," Lindwain reported. "In fact, Eonwe had let them escape with it, but it is said that they had lost their right to Feanor's work. It is said that Maedhros threw himself into a fiery cleft with his, and Maglor threw his into the sea. No one has seen him since. If he is still alive, he is now wandering somewhere in the wilderness, no doubt completely out of his mind with pain."

Ceomon thought his heart would stop. To hope for mercy had surely been in vain. But this was a far crueler punishment than his masters deserved.

"I thank you for that too," he said softly.

"Find Elrond and Elros and look after them," Lindwain urged him. "They need you now."

With that they said goodbye to each other and Ceomon set off south. He followed the new coastline and indeed, after a few days, he did indeed come across the first traces of a civilisation and eventually even a simple village. The settlement had clearly been founded only a few months ago, but Ceomon could have jumped for joy when he saw the elves who settled here. From them he learned what had happened in the year he had wandered through the wilderness.

Gil-galad had realised early on that Beleriand was doomed, and gathered as many of his people as he could find. With them he moved east across the mountains, but further south than Ceomon. When the sea made the breach through the mountains, he took the opportunity, after the tides had calmed, to move west again along the coast, finally settling on the firths.

"And what about the twins?" wanted Ceomon to know. "What about Elwing's sons?"

The Elves cast sceptical glances at the Star of Feanor he wore on his clothes. Nevertheless, they gave him information. "They are with the king," they told him.

Ceomon could have wept with joy. So they were alive and well! True, this was not to his credit, but that was now secondary.

The settlers described the way to Forlond to him and he immediately set off. Now there was no stopping him and he marched for days, allowing himself only a few hours of rest. And indeed: finally he saw a larger settlement in front of him. Many were still living in tents, but he could already make out numerous simple huts. Even the construction work for the first larger buildings had already begun. And everywhere the banners of Gil-galad were flying.

The whole settlement was bustling with hammering, drilling and sawing. No one was deterred by the cold, wet winter weather. At first, no one seemed to take much notice of Ceomon, everyone was busy building the settlement.

Ceomon grabbed the first Elf that crossed his path. "I am looking for Elrond and Elros," he said. "I was told they were here with the king."

The Elf cast a sceptical glance at the star on Ceomon's clothing. Then he nodded anyway. "You see that big construction site back there?" He pointed in the appropriate direction. "That's where the king's palace is being built. They are probably there."

"I thank you," Ceomon said and immediately set off in the direction indicated. Impatiently he asked his way until he finally stood in front of a hut. He had been told that the twins lived here. He knocked.

The door opened.

For a moment Elrond and Ceomon looked at each other in disbelief. Then they fell into each other's arms laughing with joy. Ceomon had done it! He had found the little ones and they were well!

"Elros, quickly!" shouted Elrond into the room. "Ceomon is here!"

Elros rushed over, hardly able to believe even his eyes at first. "Ceomon, I don't believe it! How beautiful!"

Ceomon couldn't help but notice that Elrond sounded a little huffy. The usual winter cold that plagued them both almost every winter.

"Lord Maklaure told me to look after the young lords," he said. "Unfortunately, I was not able to do so as I would have liked. But now I am here and ready to serve the young lords."

Elrond looked at him in irritation. "What did you just call us?"

"You are now my lords," Ceomon said adamantly. Anything else was out of the question! This was Maglor's last will and he would carry it out.

Elrond and Elros didn't look too happy about the way Ceomon saw things, but they left it at that for now.

"Come in, it's cold," Elros said instead. "I want to know where you've been and what's in that sack."

Ceomon grinned. Oh, the young lords would like that! After all, he had noticed at first glance how sparsely furnished the little home was; the twins had also arrived here with little more than what they had been able to grab.

They sat down at a table and Elrond brought them tea to warm themselves. Then Ceomon unpacked what he had been carrying all this time. On top of things sat a small stuffed bear and some wooden toys. The twins' eyes lit up when they saw it, memories of their childhood and the good times they had been able to spend with Maglor and Maedhros.

"Lord Makalaure told me to save this for you," Ceomon said. "At last I had found my way back to Amon Ereb and was pleased to find that the house was not completely destroyed. In fact, most of the library is still in tact. I met Lindwain and told him to take care of it until someone could come to salvage the books."

"That is wonderful news." Elrond sniffled with emotion as he hugged the plush toy. "Brother, we must tell the king!"

Elros nodded eagerly. "Absolutely!" he affirmed.

"I regret very much not being with you in all this time," Ceomon continued. "But you disappeared without a trace. I sent Rethtulu after you, hoping to join you later. It worries me a little not to find him here." That the little hut was not polished to a high sheen was the clearest sign that Rethtulu had not found his way here.

"We haven't heard from him," Elros said. "Actually, I was hoping you'd tell us where he'd gone."

"I hope nothing has happened to him!" added Elrond. "Did you hear what happened to Uncle Maglor and Uncle Maedhroþ?"

Regretfully, Ceomon nodded.

Elros chewed his lip, visibly struggling with tears. This was a pain that would surely be with them both for a long time to come, and one that even time would not be able to heal, Ceomon went on.

"We went after them, hoping we could still stop them in time," Elrond reported. "Yes, I know what you are going to say: that it was foolish and that we would have been better off going with you and Rethtulu. But you could not have stopped us after all. Unfortunately, we were still too late. Eonwe told us that they had gone south, along the coast, and ..." He swallowed. "And what had happened to Uncle Maedhroþ. We went after them, hoping to at least still find Uncle Maglor. Then came the tidal waves. I've never seen anything so powerful! It was as if the entire sea was crashing over the land, taking everything in its path with it. We were incredibly lucky to reach a high enough hill at the first wave. After that we had to abandon our search and turned east. All the time I can't help thinking of Uncle Maglor. If he too wandered along the coast, then he too was threatened by the tidal waves. I'm afraid he was less fortunate than we were."

Ceomon felt a chill run down his spine. Neither he nor Rethtulu had been able to find them and they had had to face such dangers! He was lucky that this time his failure had turned out to be a mild one.

He grasped the twins' hands and looked at them urgently, trying not to let them feel his own uneasiness.

"I am sure that Lord Makalaure is still alive," he said firmly.

"What makes you so sure?", Elros wanted to know.

"I think we would know if something had happened to him," he said. "After all, Eonwe also knew what had happened to the lords when they left with their _þilmarilli_."

He saw the fear in the twins' eyes, but also the desperate hope that his words were true.

"Then how did you get here?" continued Ceomon.

"Honestly, I don't know," Elrond continued. "Actually, we shouldn't have made it. We had lost almost all our luggage, including most of our provisions. And then Elros fell ill too, very, very ill."

"Ceomon, you know what Eonwe told us then, when he called us to him," Elros said. "That we half-elves, my brother and I and our birth parents, were given the choice of which destiny we felt we belonged to. I, unlike my brother, chose that of the men."

Silence descended upon them.

While silent tears ran down Elrond's face, Ceomon felt as if an icy cold hand was reaching for his heart. Elros had chosen a mortal life. He would die like a man, old and frail. It was beyond him why Elros would do this to his brother, of all people.

"Why?" he breathed.

"I saw our uncles at the end," Elros said. "Half mad with pain at what they had done, driven by their oath. And these were terrible things, we all know that. The ideas of having to live with such pain until the end of days I could not bear. I'm sorry."

He looked stricken at the grief his choice caused them, but also absolutely sure of himself. Ceomon would have no choice but to accept this.

"I was deathly ill," Elros now continued. "We don't know what I had caught, and really it doesn't matter now. By the time we reached the Ered Luin, my strength was at an end. We looked for a shelter that we hoped the sea, which was always close on our heels, would not reach. I was sure I would not live to see the next morning. Yet I did. We have no other explanation than that the Valar did not want me to die there. I recovered and though weakened, we still made it over the mountains. We were lucky, for Gil-galad had also crossed the mountains with his people only a short distance to the north and quickly found us. We joined him and now we are here to help him rebuild his kingdom."

"We are to advise him," Elrond added with clear scepticism. "Look at us. Not even a hundred years old and no experience of politics and already we are supposed to _advise_ the _High King_!"

Elros grinned. "He's taken a fancy to my brother. You must see that!"

Ceomon wiped away the sadness of the bad news and focused on the positive at that moment. Elrond and Elros were alive and well, and apparently rapidly rising to prominence among Gil-galad. They had truly grown up.

"Makalaure would be proud of you," he was sure. And he was too.

A determined expression settled on Elrond's features. "We will find Uncle Maglor."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The text anticipates the end of [Childhood memories](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13021938/chapters/29781987), but shhh. I described what happened to Elrond and Elros in the meantime in Wege der Verzweiflung (I didn't translate thate because I plan to rework this as the end of Childhood memories). What follows on chronologically from this in my HC is the Threeshot Durch Eis und Pein (also not translated yet because I'm planing something for the reworking) and then [Ghosts of the past](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27827905) (that's translated).


	2. Destinies

The tension between the twins was almost palpable. Of course they had argued before, this was far from the first time. But ever since Elros started spending more and more time with the people at Nenuial, Elrond had become increasingly on edge. That they had begun to call Elros their lord had been the straw that broke the camel's back.

Ceomon ducked his head and kept a low profile. The two of them would have to work that out between themselves. Knowing them, neither would be able to stay angry with the other for long. Even if he understood Elrond. The idea of losing Elros to time one day was terrible. Seeing him with the people who called him their lord, even king, only called it to his mind over and over again. He would rather not know what it must have been like for Elrond.

They had gone out once again, as so often in recent years, to look for Maglor and, in Ceomon's case, also for Rethtulu. But there was no trace of either of them. Some time ago, on one of these adventures, they had come across a human settlement at Lake Evendim and that had probably saved Elrond's life. They had been pursued in the depths of winter by a creature from the hells of Angband, which had seriously injured Elrond. With their last strength they had made it here and the people had willingly offered them help. Since then, they often stayed here when they roamed the North, and had even been given a house by the humans to use while they were here.

Too long for Elrond's taste.

He stood by the fireplace staring into the flames while Elros sat at the kitchen table studying the maps they had made for Gil-galad over the last few years. So at least their travels had a purpose for his kingdom as well. Ceomon cleared away the remains of their dinner and washed the dishes. He wondered how long the adamant silence between the brothers was going to last.

"Actually, we're here to look for Uncle Maglor," Elrond grumbled sullenly.

 _Aha_ , it went through Ceomon's mind and he made sure to stay out of the line of fire.

"What do you think I'm doing here?" shot back Elros, waving one of the maps.

"We haven't left the village for weeks so you can be glorified by the people here." Only now did Elrond turn to his brother.

The latter looked hurt. "Yes, they have appointed me their leader. These are my people now, I am responsible for them. And in return, they explore the land for us, looking for clues to Uncle Maglor."

"You are my brother!" As if that said it all. There was a hint of desperation in Elrond's voice.

Ceomon wondered if there might be jealousy involved. The brothers had spent their entire lives together, but now Elrond had to share his brother. Apparently he didn't like that very much.

"Galad has made you lord of Amon Ereb, and do I make such a fuss about it? No!" growled Elros angrily.

"That is something else!" countered Elrond. "And you know that very well. He could not appoint me as his advisor without me having land and title. A mere formality. After all, we're not even home very often these days, and most of the time in Forlond!"

Ceomon couldn't help smiling as he thought of this incident. When he had brought the news to the king that the old Feanor mansion was still half intact, Gil-galad agreed that it would be a shame to let the library fall into disrepair. Instead of salvaging the books and having them brought to Forlond, however, he had had the house rebuilt. At that time, Elrond's and Elros' position at the king's court was still unclear. No one really knew what to make of Earendil's sons, who had appeared out of nowhere but considered themselves Feanorians and even wore the star openly. That Gil-galad had made friends with them so quickly only added to the friction they had with the long-established nobility. They were competition for the king's favour and thus power at court. Gil-galad summarily eliminated this problem by giving them the land around the Amon Ereb and appointing them lords. Elros's objection, which was admittedly not too slight, he let pass, but Elrond, who protested no less vehemently, did not escape it. So he was now the lord of Amon Ereb and sat on Gil-galad's inner council.

Ceomon was thoroughly impressed by this stellar career.

The brothers' argument was suddenly interrupted when there was a knock at the front door. The three looked at each other in amazement. The hour was already late, who could want anything from them now?

"Perhaps someone has hurt themselves," Elrond thought and went to the door. When he opened it, he found himself face to face with Lómelinde, the young barmaid of the local inn.

"Has something happened?" he asked immediately, concerned.

She made a somewhat awkward curtsy. "No, Lord Elrond, all is well," she said. "Though something has indeed happened, though not in need of your skills as a healer."

"Brother, you are rude. Do ask her to come in," Elros said, stepping up to them and offering the young woman a seat. Somewhat embarrassed, she entered.

Ceomon had noticed that Elros seemed to have taken a liking to this woman. He had spent a lot of time with her in the last few weeks and whenever he looked at her, his gaze softened.

"We have an unusual guest in the tavern," she began to tell him as Ceomon brought her some wine. "My shift just ended and on the way home I thought the elven lords might be interested. You are looking for an elf, aren't you? One came into the tavern earlier. He said he was passing through, but didn't tell where he was going."

Immediately their ears pricked up.

"What did he look like?" asked Elros, grabbing Lómelinde's hands in his excitement. He didn't seem to notice.

She looked at her hands and blushed. "H-he's tall," she stammered, "as tall as Lord Ceomon, and dark-haired. There was a hard line around his eyes. To be honest, it scared me a little."

"What clothes was he wearing? Did he have a harp with him?", Elrond persisted.

Lómelinde shook her head. "No, no harp. But he is armed as if for war, and he carries a huge sword. Oh, and he wears Feanor's star, like you."

"Rethtulu!" exclaimed Ceomon. He hardly dared hope, but it sounded too much like him.

"Quickly, brother!" Elrond dragged Elros to his feet and the two hurried away. Ceomon at least accompanied Lómelinde outside, then ran after them. When the three of them stormed into the inn, scaring the hell out of the innkeeper, they didn't want to believe their eyes at first, but sure enough: there sat Rethtulu, the dust of the road still on his clothes, but otherwise in one piece. When he saw the twins, his eyes grew wide. Then he stood up and dropped to one knee in front of them.

" Lords!" he greeted them with an inclination of his head. "Please allow me to serve you as I served Prince Maitimo once."

The twins were far too perplexed to protest, which Ceomon knew was their mistake. Rethtulu would be even less dissuaded than he was. Instead, they were just happy to see him again.

"Come to our house, Rethtulu," Elros invited him. "We have some leftovers from dinner and a bed can be found for you too."

"You live here, lord?" asked Rethtulu in amazement.

"Oh, that's a bit of a longer story," Ceomon said instead. "But come with us first. We want to know where you've been."

"And whether you have heard from Uncle Maglor," Elrond added.

She accompanied Rethtulu back to the house and Ceomon made him the leftovers of dinner. When he had eaten and had a warm tea in his stomach, Rethtulu began to tell.

"When the lords Maitimo and Makalaure told us that they intended to steal the _þilmarilli_ , they also knew that you would want to follow them. They ordered us to prevent that. But then Beleriand broke apart and Ceomon and I were separated. I could neither pick up the trail of the young lords nor catch up with Maitimo and Makalaure. I did, however, hear what had happened to them. Lord Maitimo, however, additionally charged me to look after his brother when he was no longer able to do so. So I hoped Ceomon would find you and went after Lord Makalaure, but then had to flee east when the sea engulfed Beleriand."

"And you have been searching for him ever since," Elrond concluded. "Have you any trace of him?"

Regretfully, Rethtulu shook his head. "No, not the slightest."

It pained Ceomon to see the hope that had sprouted with Rethtulu's appearance to the twins immediately dashed.

"Why are you here with the men, if I may be so bold as to ask," Rethtulu changed the subject.

"We are also looking for Uncle Maglor," Elros said. Then he took a breath and began to tell what had happened in the past years. Rethtulu rarely showed emotion, but Ceomon knew him well enough to recognise what was going on inside him. He too was shaken by Elros' choice and its consequences. Elrond remained silent, but Ceomon still noticed his tension and underlying anger.

When Elros ended, Rethtulu remained silent. Ceomon could still see it working inside him.

"I am glad that at least we have found each other again," Ceomon tried to fill the awkward silence. "And you safe and sound too, Rethtulu."

"Your family is waiting for you in Forlond," Elrond added. "They are all well. Your mother has charged us to find you on each of our journeys."

"I am sure she will be overjoyed if we bring you back this time," Elros said. "I suggest we end this search for now and return."

It was one of the rare moments when Rethtulu showed genuine emotion. Tears of emotion stood in his eyes. He was an Elf who put his duty above all else. Ceomon knew that it bothered him when his family had to suffer because of it. The last few years must have been difficult for him, torn between family and duty.

Once again, Ceomon was glad not to have a family.

Over the next few days, Elros finished all the business he had left here, then they set off towards Forlond. Rethtulu, as was his way, did not tell much of what he had experienced in the past two decades, and when he did, he chose unemotional terse words. For twenty years he had lived in the wilderness, tirelessly searching for Maglor. Without result. The one year it had taken Ceomon to find the twins had been enough for him.

Although Rethtulu certainly could not wait to see his family again, he did not push. Ceomon saw to it that he unobtrusively kept up the pace for his friend's sake. When they finally reached Forlond, Rethtulu insisted on officially taking up his duties immediately. Fortunately, Elrond had the presence of mind to forbid him.

" Nay, you don't," he countered. "Ceomon has managed on his own for the last few years. You go to your family now, Ceomon can take you."

Rethtulu seemed to want to protest, but refrained.

"Go on, my friend," Ceomon said. "Let us not keep Nildawen waiting any longer."

Rethtulu watched the twins sceptically as they walked towards the palace, which had been built by now. Then he looked at Ceomon.

"What are you looking at me so reproachfully for!" he complained.

"You've never been much good as a servant," Rethtulu said. "Much too lax and not thorough enough. I'm sure your chambers look dreadful."

Ceomon braced his hands at his sides and reared up indignantly in front of his friend. "You've seen the house, all spick and span! Now come on. Nildawen will eat me if I don't bring her youngest to her immediately."

They headed towards the harbour where Rethtulu's family had their house. He expressed surprise that it was not closer to the palace, and was concerned that they had broken with their family tradition of serving the noble houses of the Noldor.

"Don't worry, they are of course employed by Gil-galad," Ceomon reassured him. "There we are too."

Noticing his friend's hesitation, he unceremoniously rang the doorbell. It did not take long and the door was opened. Rethtulu's eldest sister Alcariën stood before them. Her eyes grew bigger and bigger when she saw her brother, then she fell around his neck with a cry of joy. Rethtulu looked overwhelmed.

"My little brother! My little brother is back!" she cried over and over again, covering his face with a thousand kisses.

She dragged him into the house and called for her family. At present, only Rethtulu's parents and sisters were present. The rest were on duty and in town.

Ceomon followed and watched the family reunion with a smile. He could see from his friend that he was not particularly comfortable with all the excitement around him, but it was also good for him to finally be with his family again.

"Brother, you have become an uncle!", Alcariën reported to him enthusiastically. "Sendanen is quite a wonderful boy, you will love him!"

"Uncle?" repeated Rethtulu in amazement. "How wonderful!"

This was the first grandchild Hilyalandur and Nildawen had welcomed into the world. Ceomon remembered well the great joy when Alcariën had given birth to a healthy boy some years ago. He only hoped that this did not stir up Rethtulu's old pain; many, many years ago he too had been married, but his wife had died tragically with their unborn child. With Sendanen, perhaps the family's pain of loss had been taken away.

Nildawen cried tears of joy as she was allowed to hold her youngest son in her arms again after so many years.

"Where have you been all this time?" she exclaimed. "I was so afraid that something might have happened to you!"

"I had been looking for Lord Makalaure," Rethtulu said dryly.

"And you didn't think of us?!" she scolded.

"It was Lord Maitimo's order!" he justified himself.

Of course, she did not miss the opportunity to prepare a big feast right away. She forbade Rethtulu to help, however, and Ceomon made sure that his friend did not take advantage of the hour to disappear and check on the twins.

"They are grown up now," he reminded Rethtulu. "Have you forgotten? Elrond is even a lord now! I think they can do without us for a day there."

Rethtulu was clearly not convinced.

Since two decades of the wilderness had left its mark even on Rethtulu, Ceomon did not miss the opportunity to draw him a bath and took the liberty of preparing a tub for himself as well. While Nildawen frolicked in the kitchen, they washed off the dust of the road.

"Tell me something, Ceomon. Do the young lords actually know what happened to your family?", Rethtulu wanted to know.

Ceomon closed his feelings behind a mask of indifference. "No."

Thankfully, Rethtulu dropped the subject. They were silent for a while, relaxing in the warm water.

"I heard that the Valar are preparing an island for the humans, as a reward from the Houses of Edain for their efforts in the fight against Morgoth," Rethtulu said at one point. "And the people we met in the village call Elros their lord ..."

"He will go with them and lead them to his kingdom as their king," Ceomon said sadly.

"This must be incredibly hard for Elrond," Rethtulu concluded.

" You have no ideas!" retorted Ceomon. "They've been arguing a lot lately, which they never used to do. But they'll get over it. They've never been able to stay mad at each other for long." Then, however, an audacious grin stole onto his face and he leaned on the edge of his bath tub and over to Rethtulu. "But watch out: I think Elros is in love!"

In reply, Rethtulu just raised an eyebrow.

"Do you remember the tavernmaid at the inn where we found you?" continued Ceomon. "Her name is Lómelinde and she is of the line of Hador. And Elros clearly has his eye on her."

"And Elrond?"

"As coy as ever."

"Then we will have to stand by him when his brother goes with the men and he has no one else."

Ceomon sighed. "Here I am trying to chat with you and all you can think about is work again."

Still, Rethtulu was right. The parting that lay ahead would be hard for the brothers. Ceomon vowed to see them through all the hard times that lay ahead and to be there for them. Maglor would have wanted it that way.


End file.
